It Was Always You

Somethings Never Change

…Lucas’ POV…

I shut the door to the guest house and leaned against the door to catch my breath and try to slow my heart before I made the short walk to my house. All of the feelings I had for her came rushing back. I could tell she’d been having a rough few days. I had never seen her hair in any style other than down, with her dark curls framing her perfectly made up face. The Olive I saw tonight was definitely not a side of her I’d seen before. She was still beautiful, but it was obvious that she was very broken. Seeing her like that broke something inside of me.

Following the small trail, I thought back on all of the time I had spent with Olive when we were growing up. She had always been beautiful, but she had always been off limits. If Owen ever caught me looking her direction for a little too long he’d always remind me that I wasn’t allowed anywhere near her. I had been a bit of a player growing up and Owen knew that. He thought that if he didn’t remind me that his little sister was off limits I would break her, just like Tyler did. I never had the courage to try and convince him that Olive was different. I could be different with her, for her. So I kept stealing long looks when I didn’t think I’d get caught. I would flirt when Owen wasn’t looking and her face would turn red, much like it did tonight. But nothing more could ever happen between us. I knew that, and I think Owen made sure she did too.

As I reached my small cabin door, I twisted the handle and pushed my way in. This had been my first build and it was much smaller than the house that we had just moved Olive into. I had one bedroom, one bathroom, and a shared kitchen/living room area. It was all the space I needed while I was still single. The bigger home was meant to be the one I shared with my wife, if I ever managed to find one. The cabin was supposed to be my bachelor pad, but at 27 with no prospects for marriage, it feels like I’ll be here until I die.

I took a quick shower before climbing into bed. I ran over the plans for tomorrow, making a mental check list of all of the work that has to be done. I’d been doing my half of the work on the farm for so long and I was looking forward to having some help. My head filled with thoughts about getting to spend my day with Olive, working side by side doing the one thing I love most, and I couldn’t help but get excited. The same excitement I always felt when I knew I’d get to hang out with her growing up. I felt a little guilty knowing that this feeling was forbidden. If Owen hated it then, he would really hate it now. She’s so broken right now, even if Owen hadn’t shut any possibility of a relationship off, she didn’t need a romantic relationship right now. She needed a friend, so a friend is what I would be. With that thought, I closed my eyes and went to sleep.

The next morning came a little too soon with my alarm going off at 6. I got dressed and walked outside to the joint patio where Owen and Sofia were staring breakfast. Sofia handed me a plate and I sat down to join them, just like I do every morning so that we can discuss what needs to be done that day.

“Is Olive joining us this morning?” She asked.

“I told her I would meet her at 10 to show her around. She had a rough day and I thought she could use the extra sleep. I didn’t even think to tell her about breakfast.”

“Good job, Lucas.” Owen joked “I leave you alone with her for one night and you’re going to let her starve.”

Sofia popped him with a towel and said “Oh leave him alone! Letting her get a little extra sleep is considerate! I’ll make her a plate and you can take it over to her when you go over there to start the day.” I smiled at Sofia and looked to Owen, and I knew exactly what was going on through his mind, much like he knew what had been going through mine since last night.

“Don’t. Even. Think. About it. She’s not okay, man. And the last thing she needs is a new relationship. I love you, man. You’re my best friend, but she’s my sister, and she’s not okay. I mean it — not in a ‘sad breakup’ kind of way. I’ve never seen her like this. She doesn’t need anyone complicating that right now. I remember the long looks you gave when you thought I wasn’t looking. I caught a few last night too.” he said.

Honestly, I didn’t even realize I had looked last night, but I’m sure I did. Old habits die hard. I’m just glad he didn’t see when I snuck a soft kiss on her head after I found out about Tyler. I didn’t mean anything but comfort by it, but he wouldn’t have seen it that way. I rolled my eyes “I know I know. Off limits. She needs a friend. Blah blah blah.” I went off into my thoughts as Sofia started to scold him, saying something about us both being adults. While I appreciated it, I knew he was right. I had thought the same thing myself before I went to bed.

“LUCAS!” Owen yelled, snapping me out of my thoughts. “What all are you planning on showing her today? Do you need me to take over any of your tasks?”

In the past, our jobs had always been divided equally, which was fair seeing as we had bought the farm together, even when we were both working our corporate jobs. In the past, Owen took care of anything that walked. We had chickens, cows, and goats to gather from and enough barn cats to keep mice away from any of the buildings. I took care of the gardens and orchards, seeing as I’ve always had a bit of a green thumb, and I happily took charge when we decided to started a couple of bee hives as well to help with the plants and to have honey for the markets. Sofia made sure we always had three home cooked meals a day and that the outside kitchen wouldn’t attract any unwanted pests and she would always help Owen with gathering from the animals.

I enjoy my work and have never really needed any help, but when I found out that Olive needed a place to stay, I jumped on the idea of moving her here and helping us out on the farm. Another set of hands is always appreciated, even if it’s not needed.

Owen made his way to the barn and I decided to spend the next couple of hours before getting Olive by checking on the bees since she wouldn’t be able to help with them quite yet. We only had one suit and they are not really beginner friendly, so she’d need more time before I threw her into that.

The bees weren’t quite ready for me to harvest honey, so I looked down at my watch and saw that it was 9:30. I had just enough time to get out of the suit and head to my place to grab Olive’s breakfast and make my way to pick her up for the day. My heart skipped a little at the thought of picking her up and I could feel myself getting excited. I shoved it all back down and reminded myself that she was off limits and she really needed me to be her friend. I made my way to her door and rang the bell.

“Coming!” I heard from the other side of the door.

I smiled, she sounded excited. Maybe she wasn’t as broken as we had all assumed. She opened the door and I saw the Olive from my memories. Hair down, framing her face. She looked up at me, with her deep blue eyes sparking through her lashes as her cheeks began to blush.

If she needed a friend, I’d be just that. At least for now.